How do you bowl lather?

[nlife]

OP, damp brush when bowl lathering or face lathering, just give your brush a lazy shake or two. The bowl you choose matters (as does your soap/cream, brush and everything else, but really with any reputable soap or cream you'll be fine) some texture or ridges will make building a lather faster and easier. When bowl lathering I use a hammered copper bowl or my Timeless shaving bowl (find one on their website in the "Scratch & Dent" and thank me later). You can either load your brush directly from your soap puck or scoop a bit into your bowl. Golden rule of cooking applies... YOU CAN ALWAYS ADD MORE H2O but ya' can't really take it out. Your preferences on lather likely differ from mine and everyone else's on the forums and that's OK. Play around with it, you'll get there.


Please post a pic of that slow feeder bowl. I am genuinely intrigued. 2nd pic with lather earns bonus points...

Unfortunately I don't have a picture of lather in my bowl on hand, but there are YouTube videos on it. Stirling Collapsible Lather Bowl is the same thing I have.

If you skip to the 1:50 mark in THIS VIDEO you can see what I'm talking about. If you skip to the 4 minute mark you can see it in action. It really builds a lather fast.

 

[Invicta]

When you bowl lather, do you start with a very wet brush or just a damp brush?

I find a damp brush works best or you get a soupy mess when loading with a very wet brush. I just add water till the lather looks right. I also use a scuttle which is essentially a warm bowl. The problem is how damp is the brush to start with and that is dependent on whether you use a cream, a soft soap or a hard triple milled soap. Trial and error is the only solution to the variables.
This Wiki will help: Lathering | Badger & Blade

 

[shave/brush]

I find a damp brush works best or you get a soupy mess when loading with a very wet brush. I just add water till the lather looks right. I also use a scuttle which is essentially a warm bowl. The problem is how damp is the brush to start with and that is dependent on whether you use a cream, a soft soap or a hard triple milled soap. Trial and error is the only solution to the variables.
This Wiki will help: Lathering | Badger & Blade

That is the question, how wet is your brush when you start? Yours is damp.

 

[Wgg2017]

I start with a damp brush that I wet under the faucet for a few seconds and then give a gentle shake. I use a synthetic brush most of the time so no need to soak. The lather is usually paste-like at first and I add drops of water as necessary to my Timeless bowl to get the consistency I like.

With creams and softer soaps I'll scoop some out of the container and place it in the bowl before I shower. With soaps that are on the dry side but still scoop-able (think MdC) I'll add a few drops of water to let them bloom for the 10-15 minutes I'm in the shower. I find this makes the lather building process a little faster.

With hard soaps, I'll place a few drops of water on top of the soap before I get in the shower, again to bloom the soap and build the lather more quickly. If I'm planning to use a boar brush, I'll fill the bowl with water and let the brush soak at this time too. I then shake enough water out of the brush so that it will pick up any leftover bloom water and swirl the brush on top the soap to pick some up. I'm not making lather here, just picking up a very pasty soap substance. I then move over to the shaving bowl to build the lather by adding water as needed.

 

[Phoenixkh]

I'm a scoop and smear guy.... I always later in a bowl for shaving lather... and on my face, for my pre-shave applications. I use a small spoon my wife inherited from somewhere... a small silver spoon with a wooden "bird" handle. I had used this spoon for decades for scooping out grapefruit sections.

Since I shower before I shave, I scoop or scrape the soap into the bottom of my shaving bowl. I use one of those "continuous mist" bottles you can pick up lots of places. They aren't expensive. I add enough water so the soap can soak or "bloom" while I'm showering. It makes a a significant difference with Canada Shaving Soap and other hard soaps that I have to scrape little flakes in the bowl. By the time I'm ready to lather, the soap is ready.

For how wet the brush should be. For me, it's sort of simple. I soak badger brushes or wet synth brushes right before their use. I bump the bristles against the side of the sink to get most of the water out. It's always easier to add more water than add more soap, so I don't want the brush to be too wet... then the later is too thin and I'd have to add more soap. I lather the soap in the bowl... add water as needed. I think I have to add water more times than not. The mister works great for this. I can squirt it once or twice into the bowl if the lather is almost there..If I know I need a lot of water, I'll squirt it 3 to 5 times, etc. Can you add water directly from the tap... either by putting your brush under it or dripping water in by hand? Of course... but I find the mister gives me a controlled amount of water.

Like so many things here... there is no single right or wrong way to do things. I developed this style as time has gone one.

This is the video I watched near the beginning of my wet shaving journey. This is also the first time I saw someone use a CaYuen lathering bowl. I finally bought one a few weeks ago now.... It has been a huge improvement for me, personally... not that my Timeless lathering bowls are bad... they are excellent... but the CaYuen has improved my lather.. and it's actually fun to use.

 

[Tirvine]

I have nothing to add, but I find this technique very complicated and possibly uses soap than face lathering. So I'll stay the course. I wet my brush and shake it gently, no snap, five seconds or less atop the puck, and onto the face with a mixture of circles and paint strokes. Since my soap puck is now below the rim of its container, I guess you could call it bowl lathering.

 

[ChriWilson]

Start with the Marco Method and adjust from there

 

[SydneyShaver]

Chris IAMCDB on YouTube has the best bowl lathering tutorials in my opinion. He uses different types of soap/cream and shows his method from start to finish. Maybe look his videos up? I found them very helpful

 

[billypeoples]

To bowl lather, ya start with a damp brush, not too wet, not too dry. Then ya swirl the brush in the shaving cream or soap in a bowl till it gets all foamy and thick, like whipped cream. Some folks use a lather bowl to make it, but ya can also do it right on your face. Just depends on what ya prefer, really.

 

[McBuzzBang]

Depends on the fiber. I find that synthetic requires the brush to have less water and the Badgers have to have a little more. That is what works for me before I put the brush into the bowl and begin making a lather. Usually, I have to add some drops or dribbles of water as I go, but that’s all practice and visual. Be warned, go slow with adding water. it’s easier to add some than take it away. There will come a point after adding a few drops that the lather will become rich and thick…it’ll grow and lather up big time in the bowl. Then grasshopper, you’ll know you’ve mastered the Bowl Lather.

 

[preidy]

It takes a little time and practice to get it right. Be patient. Also as mentioned above. Go slow and easy adding water you can't take it back. When you get it right it's a beautiful thing. BTW I use a synthetic brush w/Silvertip type bristle. The junk shop shave bowl (hard plastic) bottom is scored to enhance agitation. Cheers....

 

[ExtremelyDanger]

All it takes is one new member to bump a 10month old thread and we're off to beating the dead horse again